


Show of Heart

by tryslora



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Horse Racing, Alternate Universe - Human, Fluff, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-08-01
Updated: 2014-08-01
Packaged: 2018-02-11 08:36:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,578
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2061369
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tryslora/pseuds/tryslora
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Heart of the Wolf is a horse with a <i>particular</i> personality. Stiles is a jockey that is far too tall. Derek doesn't see how this jockey is ever going to get his horse to win.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Show of Heart

**Author's Note:**

> I was driving to work today and thinking of track traffic (I live south of Saratoga) and suddenly thought... we need fluffy Sterek with Stiles as a jockey! So um. Yes, this happened. And I know very little about horse raising/training/racing so it is probably riddled with errors, but it's indeed fluffy. Also, holy crap, there is actually an AU - Horse Racing tag! I'm pleasantly surprised by that! And of course, as always, I do not own the world nor characters of Teen Wolf, I just like to play with them.

“ _You’re_ the jockey.” Derek crosses his arms, scowling at the younger man standing in front of him, barely an inch shorter than Derek’s own six foot frame. He’s lithe, yes, all slender limbs and scattered strength, but he doesn’t fit the image of a proper _jockey_. “You can’t be.”

“I am.” He holds out his hand as he grins, moles dotting his skin like a map to his emotions. “Stiles Stilinski. Laura hired me, and I’m assuming you’re Derek, and this is Heart of the Wolf.”

Derek’s thin-lipped smile eases when he looks at the horse, feels the way it lips at his shoulder, leaning out of the stall to look at the stranger. “This is our Heart, yes. But you’re not riding her. You’re too big.” He takes another look at the jockey, trying to fit name and size and proper specifications together in his mind. He doesn’t know what Laura was thinking. More than likely, this kid lied. His expression twists sour. “I’ll call Laura. We’ll get your contract terminated for dishonest representation of ability, and find a new jockey. We don’t have to race until tomorrow.”

“Which means Heart and I need to spend today getting acquainted. I’ve already heard about her… particular… personality.” Stiles ignores everything Derek has said and pushes past him. “And I didn’t lie about anything. I told Laura that I weigh 135lbs—I’m very light-framed. Which is heavier than most jockeys, yes, but I’ve also seen Heart’s records. She’s got slightly broader withers and she carries well, and she’s supposed to be carrying at least 125lbs in this race. She’s been known to toss smaller jockeys, and Laura was looking for someone with a little more weight to keep her under control. I also have a shocking win record—I’ve placed in every race I’ve ridden. Which, admittedly, there aren’t that many because no one seems to trust a tall jockey. But I’m good. And you’re a long shot and you need every chance you can get to pull a win.” He grins at Derek. “Laura decided to make me that chance.”

Heart nips at Stiles’s hair, and he reaches up, pulling the horse’s head to him. They meet forehead to forehead, and Derek watches as Heart blows out air, a soft burbling noise as she leans into Stiles.

The horse likes him, and honestly, that horse doesn’t really like anyone but Derek, which has been a problem all along. He’s lost count of the number of jockeys and trainers that have left with Heart’s teeth imprinted on their skin.

He sighs. “Fine. But what the hell kind of a name is _Stiles_? Did someone nickname you that because Paddock was already taken?”

Stiles laughs, and that helps, because if Stiles can get a joke about barnyards and his name, it probably means he knows his way around the animals. “Nah. Just a shortening of Stilinski because my actual name is a mouthful. I wouldn’t dream of forcing anyone to say it.” He looks around, scanning the tack, and Derek moves back slightly so that Stiles can give everything his professional once over. “I’m going to take Heart out for a warmup, and we’re going to have a good heart to heart, and tomorrow you’ll see a win. First race this season?”

“Only race this season,” Derek admits. “If she places here, I’ve got another possible one lined up down south, later in the summer, and everything else depends on that. She’s on hold, because she’s a bit awkward, and no one wants to take a chance. I’m hoping to get the kinks out this season, and race her more next year.”

Stiles nuzzles into the horse’s muzzle, and she blows back at him comfortably. “Don’t worry,” Stiles murmurs. “We’re going to go show them all just how awesome you are.”

#

Heart is nervous when she’s loaded into the starting gate. She’s in the outside lane, with absolutely no advantages because of her chances. She dances sideways, and Stiles leans in, whispering to her as they make their way between the rails, but nothing seems to keep her still. Derek’s hands curl into fists; he can’t go to them, has to watch from the owners’ space, and it’s driving him insane to be separated from the filly he’s raised since she was born. He tries to breathe evenly, lets it out slowly and smiles slightly when she seems to hear him, head turning to seek him out.

Stiles touches his forehead lightly, and Derek wonders if he just imagined the salute, barely able to see from this distance.

He sees Heart go still, can almost sense the anticipation in Stiles from where he stands. Derek holds his breath as the starting gun fires and the gate opens, horses launching themselves onto the track. It will be less than two minutes before it’s all over, and Derek has to decide whether to race Heart again, or whether she might be better suited to breeding.

His mother recommended breeding, but Laura stood with Derek when he chose to race Heart. She is _his_ Heart, raised since he helped deliver her from a dying mother, and he has far too much invested in her future to let her go.

Heart’s gait is awkward, a strange lope that seems to turn her legs over far too slow, but she somehow finds cadence on the track and moves ahead. She rounds the track, making up distance, pulling in without going to tight to the other horses. Stiles skirts the edges of the pack, looking for his way around, taking advantage of the way Heart skips instead of strides.

Before Derek realizes it, four horses have pulled away from the others, and Heart is one of them. He hears her name blaring from the loudspeakers as she races Lazy Demon and Shadow’s Breath, the jockeys angling for position while they sort out who will be second and third, and who will go home with nothing. None of them can reach Lady Belle, who crosses the line first. Heart puts on a burst of speed, Stiles low over her neck, and crosses neck and neck with Lazy Demon, leaving Shadow’s Breath a length behind them. There is a moment of silence, then the places are announced: Lady Belle, Lazy Demon, and Heart of the Wolf for win, place, and show.

She did it; his Heart has made it into the winner’s circle. He never expected her to be first, but he had hardly hoped that she might place at all.

Derek pushes through the crowd, making his way down to meet his horse and his jockey. He reaches her side, and puts his hands out, expecting Heart to push her head into him. Instead he gets an armful of Stiles tumbling awkwardly down, his limbs flailing as oddly as Heart’s gait had run earlier. Derek smirks at the image of Stiles as a colt, steadying him carefully without letting go.

“We did it!” Stiles chortles. “I told you we’d be brilliant. You’ve got a great filly here, and she’s going to go places. Just give her another season to come into her full strength.”

“You’ll be riding her again,” Derek blurts out, because he has to make sure Stiles knows. He saw the way they worked together, can see how Heart whickers now and nudges against Stiles, checking that he’s still there with her. “Thank you.” 

He means to kiss Stiles on the cheek, a quick smack of thanks, but Stiles turns into him and lips catch and eyes go wide. He should pull back. He should push away. And instead he stands there while flashbulbs pop, kissing his jockey and tugging him closer.

It’s not the way things are meant to go, but it’s not bad, either. He feels Heart’s nose at the base of his neck, pushing him towards Stiles, and he suspects the horse _approves_ , as if she were human with an opinion about these things.

“That was unexpected,” Stiles says when they finally break, his voice hoarse.

“But not unpleasant,” Derek counters.

Stiles smirks. “Nope, not unpleasant at all. Feel free to add that to the list of things we can do again.”

#

The story breaks in the news with pictures of Stiles, Derek, and Heart of the Wolf all standing together. She may not have won the race, but her long odds place makes her interesting, as do the pictures of Derek and Stiles. Laura cackles when she finds out, and Derek’s mother simply sighs and makes the arrangements for further races.

Stiles signs a contract to ride Heart both for the rest of the season and for the next. He makes Derek promise that him being a jockey will not have any impact on whether he might be considered able to ride something else, like oh, Derek, and Derek readily agrees.

After all, he’s already seen how well Stiles rides on the track. He doesn’t want to wait two years to find out how well he rides in the bedroom. Or stall. Or anywhere else that might come to mind.

“Never thought I’d find someone to tame your Heart,” Laura jokes, and Derek ignores her, because sometimes it’s not so bad when she’s right.

He kisses Stiles after Heart is done training for the day and he knows it’s not bad at all. Heart may have taken third place in her first race, but in the end, it’s Derek who’s won.

**Author's Note:**

> You can also find me [on tumblr](http://tryslora.tumblr.com)!


End file.
